A Unifying Mission for a Divided World
Painting “Here Comes the Sun” by Robert Althouse
Bill McKibben, the prophet of global climates dark truths, has published a new book with a positive story that is not yet being fully told and appreciated. “There is one good big thing happening among all the big bad things happening on our planet” he says, and “it is going so far largely unnoticed.” The speed with which the world is transitioning to new technologies for solar power is unprecedented. Solar power is now the biggest source of energy in the world, and yet, we still don’t seem to take it seriously. That is about to change.
This May the Chinese were putting up 3 Gigawatts of solar power every day. A Gigawatt is the equivalent of output for a day of one coal-fired energy plant. While President Joe Biden tried to launch America’s transition to solar and wind power with the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA), the Trump administration has now reversed all that progess, which is a big gift to the Chinese government.
Our local star, the Sun is happy to give us all the energy we would ever need. And we now have the technology to do just that. Elegantly designed photovoltaic cells can capture the sun’s rays and wind turbines can harness energy from the winds the sun also helps to produce. And the grid required to do this, is local, and distributed so it can’t be controlled by a few despots around the world. Imagine a world without coal and gas. It would be a beautiful world with abundant, cheap energy that could transform our world for the better on so many levels. That world is possible today, but we aren’t talking about it. Why?
It’s surprising that the climate prophet of gloom and doom has now published a book called, “Here Comes the Sun”. It’s a beautiful, positive message about the future and what is possible. McKibben has also founded “Third Act”, the first global grassroots climate campaign to build a progressive organizing movement for people over the age of 60. Get ready for “Sun Day” on September 21, 2025–the Fall Equinox–to celebrate solar and wind power and the growing movement to build a cleaner, healthier future.
To learn more about this special day and how to get involved, visit Third Act’s Website. To learn more about this story, pick up his new book, “Here Comes the Sun”. Be prepared to be surprised and astonished.
~ Roshi Robert Althouse